Photos: 2017 Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards winners

You never know what you will see in nature. The finalists of the Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards were able to capture the lighter and humorous side of wild animals.

This year's contest features images of animals laughing, penguins going to church and a polar bear cub hitching a ride on the backside of an adult bear.

Contest co-founder Tom Sullam said, "Conservation was always at the heart of the competition, along with the fact that people seemed to enjoy images of animals doing entertaining things!"

The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards supports the Born Free Foundation, an animal welfare and conservation organization that aims to "save lives, stop suffering and protect species in the wild." The contest founders also created a book titled "Wild and Crazy" featuring images from previous Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards.

The overall winner of this year's contest was "Help" by Tibor Kerccz, a series of photos of an owl falling off a branch next to two other owls.

See the full list of winners and finalists for the 2017 Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards on the contest's website.